FAFSA
Financial Aid
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2027–28 FAFSA
Apply early!
The 2027–28 FAFSA application will be available to fill out on studentaid.gov starting in October. The Office of Financial Aid is available to help students fill out the form during our FAFSA events and office visits.
Please make sure that you have 2025 tax documents available, access to your Social Security number, and have created an Federal Student Aid ID, If you are still classified as a dependent, you will also need the same documentation from your parents or guardian.
Note: If you are filing for summer aid, the 2026–27 application is open until June 30. you will need your 2024 tax information for the 26-27 FAFSA application
PFW School Code
PFW School Code
001828
Quick Links
Fafsa Completion Events
Take the stress out of the FAFSA.
We regularly hold FAFSA completion events where we provide information and guide students in the process of completing and submitting the FAFSA. If you need assistance filing the FAFSA, register today.
Additional Info
You know it’s important, so here is even more info.
We are here to help you navigate your way through all things FAFSA.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is one of the best, easiest, and fastest ways to get money for college. The FAFSA is used to apply for federal student aid, such as federal grants, loans, work-study, and scholarships. In addition, colleges, universities, and other scholarship organizations might use your application to determine your eligibility for other aid.
The government takes the information you provide on this form and uses a formula established by law to calculate your Student Aid Index (SAI) which is an eligibility index number—a measure of your family’s financial strength. It takes into account your family’s taxed and untaxed income, assets, and benefits, such as unemployment or Social Security.
Here are reasons you should complete the FAFSA:
- It’s free. The application doesn’t cost you anything to complete.
- It’s easy. The application can be accessed online and has been simplified over the past few years.
- It’s fast. Results show that it takes most students less than 30 minutes to complete.
- It’s worth it. More people qualify for federal student aid than you think. Do not leave money on the table by not applying.
- It may be required. Many states, schools, and private scholarships require you to submit the FAFSA before they will consider you for any financial aid.
- Submitting your FAFSA on time ensures that you are considered for all available aid that applies to you. Submitting it late may result in less aid being available to you.
- If you start attending school in the spring or summer at PFW, you should complete the FAFSA for the current year. New aid years start in the fall.
- You can apply for financial aid prior to applying for admission. However, you must be admitted to a degree-seeking program (or a teacher’s certification program) before eligibility is calculated to receive financial aid.
- Students must invite any contributors needed to complete their portion of the FAFSA. A contributor could be the student, the student’s spouse (if applicable), a biological or adoptive parent, or the spouse of the remarried parent who is on the FAFSA—the stepparent. All contributors are required to have an FSA ID and must give consent to have their federal tax information uploaded from the IRS, or the student will not be eligible for federal aid.
- We recommend printing the FAFSA on the Web submission confirmation page as proof of completion. Keep this in your records. One of the most requested documents is a tax transcript. Get your tax return transcript from the IRS. If you have any FAFSA filing questions, you can contact FAFSA customer service agents at 800-433-3243. Live chat and email options are also available.
- Enter your name and Social Security number exactly as it appears on your Social Security card (include suffixes and your middle name/initial).
- If you are a dependent student, provide your parent(s) name and Social Security number exactly as it appears on your Social Security card (including suffixes and middle name/initial).
- If you are an independent married students, provide your spouse’s name and Social Security number exactly as it appears on your Social Security card (including suffixes and middle name/initial).
Even the simplest little error can cause a delay in your FAFSA application, so be sure to carefully read all the questions. Here are some more tips on how to avoid errors:
- Do not list an incorrect Social Security number or driver’s license number.
- If your parent(s) do not have Social Security numbers, list 000-00-0000.
- Use your legal name. Your name must be listed on your FAFSA as it appears on your Social Security card.
- Do not enter a temporary or summer address as your permanent address.
- Do not leave blank fields. Enter a “0” for numeric or “not applicable” for text.
- Be careful when using commas or decimal points in numeric fields (round to the nearest dollar).
- Do not list the adjusted gross income (AGI) as equal to the total income from working (the AGI is usually greater).
- If you incorrectly file income taxes as head of household, the school will need an amended tax return to be filed with the IRS before paying out financial aid awards.
- Be careful when listing your marital status. The Department of Education wants to know your marital status on the day you sign the FAFSA.
- Be sure to provide all information for your parent(s). If your custodial parent has remarried, you will need the stepparent’s information as well.
- List both legal parents on the FAFSA if they live in the same household, even if they are not married.
- An unborn child must be counted as a member of the household if that child will be born during the award year and you will provide the child with more that half of their support.
- Don’t forget to count yourself as a student (member of the household attending college during the award year).
- Remember to list the college you plan on attending by entering their federal school code. Purdue Fort Wayne’s school code is 001828.
Am I Dependent or Independent?
Your answers to questions on the FAFSA® form determine whether you are considered a dependent or independent student. The questions change a little from one year’s application to the next year’s. Please keep in mind that the specific dates will chnage for yeach year and to check the FAFSA website.
| Were you born before Jan. 1, 2004? | Yes | No |
| As of today, are you married? (Answer “No” if you are separated but not divorced.) | Yes | No |
| At the beginning of the 2027–28 school year, will you be enrolled in a master’s or doctorate program (such as an M.A., MBA, M.D., J.D., Ph.D., Ed.D., graduate certificate, etc.)? | Yes | No |
| Are you currently serving on active duty in the U.S. armed forces for purposes other than training? (If you are a National Guard or Reserves enlistee, are you on active duty for other than state or training purposes?) | Yes | No |
| Are you a veteran of the U.S. armed forces?* | Yes | No |
| Do you have children or other people (excluding your spouse) who live with you and who receive more than half of their support from you now and between July 1, 2027, and June 30, 2028? | Yes | No |
| At any time since you turned 13, were you an orphan (no living biological or adoptive parent)? | Yes | No |
| At any time since you turned 13, were you a ward of the court? | Yes | No |
| At any time since you turned 13, were you in foster care? | Yes | No |
| Are you or were you a legally emancipated minor, as determined by a court in your state of residence? | Yes | No |
| Are you or were you in a legal guardianship with someone other than your parent or stepparent, as determined by a court in your state of residence? | Yes | No |
| At any point in 2026 or later, were you not living with your parent or guardian, and were you either (1) homeless or (2) self-supporting and at risk of being homeless? | Yes | No |
*Answer “Yes” (you are a veteran) if you meet both conditions:
- You served
- on active duty in the U.S. armed forces (military, naval, air, or space service); or
- as a reservist or member of the National Guard and were called up to active federal duty by presidential order for a purpose other than training; or
- on active or inactive duty for training in the U.S. armed forces and were disabled due to injury received or made worse in the line of duty.
- You didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge when you were released.
Also answer “Yes” if you aren’t a veteran now but will be one by June 30, 2028.
*Answer “No” (you are not a veteran) if you
- have never engaged in active duty in the U.S. armed forces;
- are currently a Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) student, a cadet, or midshipman at a service academy;
- are currently serving in the U.S. armed forces and will continue to serve through June 30, 2028; or
- were engaged in active duty in the U.S. armed forces but released under dishonorable conditions.
**You’ll be able to fill out the FAFSA form as an independent student if you respond to this question that you aren’t living with your parent or guardian, and you’re homeless or at risk of being homeless. For more guidance, see our help article about answering the "Student Homelessness" question.
What if I answered “Yes” to one or more of the questions above?
If you answered “yes” to any of the questions, you’re considered an independent student for federal student aid purposes. Your parents won’t be required to add their information to your FAFSA form.
What if I answered “No” to every question?
If you answered “no” to every question, you’re considered a dependent student for federal student aid purposes. Your parents must provide their information on your FAFSA form.
Note: Not living with parents or not being claimed by them on tax forms does not make you an independent student for purposes of applying for federal student aid.
For a video resource, check out Am I a Dependent or Independent Student on the FAFSA® Form?.
After you File
You’ve filed your FAFSA—now what?
To make sure you get your financial aid on time, you’ll want to follow the steps on this page after filing your FAFSA each year. Making sure that you check off these tasks will help ensure your success at PFW.
Review the status of your FAFSA three to five days after you submit it. Make any necessary corrections as soon as possible to make sure that your financial aid is processed quickly and accurately.
Be sure to avoid these common mistakes:
- Switching two numbers (for example, “$1,200” instead of “$2,100”)
- Adding too many or too few zeros to a number
- Listing your parents’ income as yours (and the other way around)
- Forgetting to have your parent electronically sign the application with their FSA ID
Your FAFSA will be processed with the information you provide, so make sure everything is correct.
In some cases, you may need to make specific changes to your FAFSA to meet eligibility requirements for awards from the state for Indiana residents. Check ScholarTrack for details.
Grants and scholarships are automatically accepted on your behalf since they represent money that you don’t have to earn or pay back. You must manually accept, reduce, or decline all other awards through goPFW—otherwise, they won’t be applied to your bursar bill.
Once your eligibility has been reviewed, you’ll get a financial aid award offer. Take time to review your award offer with your family. It will give the details about your financial eligibility, expected costs, and other important information. All students will have access to their award offer on goPFW and new students will receive a hard copy via the US Postal Service.
Get familiar with your aid package and your cost of attendance (COA). If you receive more funding after your award package has been put together, and that funding causes your aid total to exceed your COA, your award package may change. In some cases, your aid can change even if it doesn’t exceed your COA.
Your student account also provides a safe and secure way to pay your bill and receive your refund. Check out the account access page.
You may be asked to verify the information you provided on your FAFSA before you can be declared eligible to receive financial aid. If you’re selected for verification, you will see the requirements listed on your goPFW account and will receive communication regarding next steps.
The most common verification tasks are submitting a tax return transcript.
Be sure to complete verification as quickly as you can and turn in all required documents at the same time to avoid delays with your financial aid.
Don’t wait too long. If you submit your documentation at the end of the semester, there is no guarantee that your verification will be completed before the last day of classes. This could affect your financial aid eligibility, and we may be required to cancel any existing awards you received.
If you accept part or all of a Federal Direct Loan, you’ll need to go through entrance counseling and sign a master promissory note (MPN). Both can be completed on studentaid.gov; you’ll just need your FSA ID to log in.
Email is our primary way of communicating with you. Make a habit of checking your university email on a regular basis—if you miss a crucial message, it could delay your aid or make you ineligible due to missed deadlines.
If your financial aid is greater than your bursar bill, you’ll be sent a refund for the difference. With direct deposit, you’ll get that money faster. See more information from the Office of the Bursar.
Review the status of your FAFSA three to five days after you submit it. Make any necessary corrections as soon as possible to make sure that your financial aid is processed quickly and accurately.
Be sure to avoid these common mistakes:
- Switching two numbers (for example, “$1,200” instead of “$2,100”)
- Adding too many or too few zeros to a number
- Listing your parents’ income as yours (and the other way around)
- Forgetting to have your parent electronically sign the application with their FSA ID
Your FAFSA will be processed with the information you provide, so make sure everything is correct.
In some cases, you may need to make specific changes to your FAFSA to meet eligibility requirements for awards from the state for Indiana residents. Check ScholarTrack for details.
You may be asked to verify the information you provided on your FAFSA before you can be declared eligible to receive financial aid. If you’re selected for verification, you will see the requirements listed on your goPFW account and will receive communication regarding next steps.
The most common verification tasks are submitting a tax return transcript.
Be sure to complete verification as quickly as you can and turn in all required documents at the same time to avoid delays with your financial aid.
Don’t wait too long. If you submit your documentation at the end of the semester, there is no guarantee that your verification will be completed before the last day of classes. This could affect your financial aid eligibility, and we may be required to cancel any existing awards you received.
Grants and scholarships are automatically accepted on your behalf since they represent money that you don’t have to earn or pay back. You must manually accept, reduce, or decline all other awards through goPFW—otherwise, they won’t be applied to your bursar bill.
If you accept part or all of a Federal Direct Loan, you’ll need to go through entrance counseling and sign a master promissory note (MPN). Both can be completed on studentaid.gov; you’ll just need your FSA ID to log in.
Once your eligibility has been reviewed, you’ll get a financial aid award offer. Take time to review your award offer with your family. It will give the details about your financial eligibility, expected costs, and other important information. All students will have access to their award offer on goPFW and new students will receive a hard copy via the US Postal Service.
Get familiar with your aid package and your cost of attendance (COA). If you receive more funding after your award package has been put together, and that funding causes your aid total to exceed your COA, your award package may change. In some cases, your aid can change even if it doesn’t exceed your COA.
Email is our primary way of communicating with you. Make a habit of checking your university email on a regular basis—if you miss a crucial message, it could delay your aid or make you ineligible due to missed deadlines.
Your student account also provides a safe and secure way to pay your bill and receive your refund. Check out the account access page.
If your financial aid is greater than your bursar bill, you’ll be sent a refund for the difference. With direct deposit, you’ll get that money faster. See more information from the Office of the Bursar.
Mastodons are social creatures
The Office of Financial Aid is always buzzing with activity. Take a look to see what’s going on.